Laryngeal paralysis often produces devastating complications, resulting in impaired respiration (stridor) with compromised protection of the lower airway (aspiration) and phonatory dysfunction. Methods to restore function after paralysis have been unsatisfactory despite ingenious surgical manipulations including attempted laryngeal reinnervation. We hypothesize that selective electro-stimulation of the intrinsic laryngeal musculature (specifically the laryngeal abductors) may be a feasible therapeutic alternative that could improve and better restore the functions of the paralyzed laryns. Three phases of investigation are proposed: 1) Acute experiments in the dog involving stimulation of its abductor muscles, the posterior cricoarytenoid (PCA), while establishing optimum stimulus parameters and developing a reliable video laryngoscopic method of assessing the effect of stimulation on glottic size. 2) Chronic dog experiments using phasic electrical activity of the intact phrenic nerve to trigger phasic electro-stimulation of PCA. 3) Assessing the longterm effects of implanted, active electrodes on canine nerve and muscle. The goal of this project is to lay the groundwork for the eventual development of a totally implantable laryngeal pacemaker.